Chapter Text
The woman standing across from him peers at the fresh fish. “Where did you say that this was caught again, dear?”
Keigo shrugs, dragging a hand through his windswept hair, and offers her a grin. “Oh, you know. Just off the coast, really- about twenty, thirty kilometers that way.” He gestures towards the ocean behind them.
His customer, a kindly merchant named Rei, nods slowly, humming her approval. “My. I haven’t seen such quality fish around these parts in ages. How much?”
Keigo tells her his price. Rei’s eyebrows shoot up a bit, at the slightly exorbitant price; but, the she pays it easily, and smiles at him. “You should come by for dinner some time! My wife would love to meet you. She’s always enjoyed your wares.”
He laughs sheepishly at her. “Ah, some other time, perhaps! Next time I’m in town, yes? I’d love to stop by.”
Her smile doesn’t waiver; she nods at him, turning to go. “I’ll hold you to it, then! Lovely seeing you again, dear.” She leaves Keigo’s boat as her employees cart away the entire stock of fresh-caught fish, waving at him as she goes.
Keigo waves goodbye in return, before sighing, and turning to peer across the busy docks.
It’s filled with other vendors, selling their wares from both stalls and on ship-deck, like him. It looks fascinating as always, and it’s a lovely day, too- but the late afternoon sun is bearing down something fierce. And… he doesn’t want to spend too much more time here, anyways.
Not that it isn’t nice, being around other people, like Yukimura Rei- but staying in one place for too long leads to uncomfortable questions, that he’d rather not answer. And he's already been here for most of the day.
Besides. He’s really grown rather fond of his nomadic lifestyle, over the past few years.
So, with a final glance at the docks, he lifts the anchor, and points his small sailboat away, leaving the seaside town as he goes.
(He’d been positively awful at sailing, back when he first started; but by now, he considers himself a bit of a pro.)
He’s about fifty kilometers off the coast, the shoreline nothing but a distant speck, when there are barking sounds coming from the ocean waves. He laughs and leaves the steering wheel, walking down to the main deck, and peers over the railing. “I managed to sell it all in less than a day, this time! We’ll have to get more salmon the next time that we come back to this town- I think that Rei was especially fond of those.”
The reddish-brown seal that’s directly below him yips once more, before leaping, and-
With an almighty splash, completely soaking Keigo, Touya’s standing in front of him, wrapped in a scarred sealskin and greeting him with a raised eyebrow. “Salmon, huh?”
He chokes, spitting a stray strand of kelp out of his mouth, and glares down at his wet clothing. “Was that necessary?”
Touya merely laughs at him, and walks closer, until their chests are practically pressed together. Ocean eyes glint at him, as the other man smirks. “Yes.”
Keigo swallows, absently running his hands down those firm, glorious abs, completely distracted from his poor clothes. “You- that’s not fair- stop playing dirty, hot stuff-”
He doesn’t get to finish his sentence, though, before his lover is leaning even closer, pulling him into a deep kiss.
Touya, as always, tastes like sea-salt, and is warm in all the best ways. Keigo groans, letting go and pushing forward, needing more, wrapping his arms around so that he can grab a handful of Touya’s ass and squeeze-
There’s another splashing sound, and Keigo abruptly pulls back to see Shouto frowning at them. The thirteen-year-old’s voice is huffy. “Is that really necessary?”
“Aww, baby brother.” Touya bares a sharp-toothed smile at Shouto, eyes alight with mischief. “Does it bother you that-”
“Don’t you dare finish that sentence, Touya, or I’ll help Natsuo try to steal all your fish next time we go hunting.” From the side of the boat, there’s another yipping sound; Shouto leans over, and responds in kind, loud barks and clicks.
Touya gapes, moving towards the edge of the boat. “You wouldn’t- the betrayal-” Touya’s voice also breaks off into a series of inhuman noises, and Keigo chuckles.
He follows them, walking forward to peer over the side of the boat, where two more seals are swimming alongside. Fuyumi is in the middle of thwacking Natsuo with a flipper, while Natsuo barks excitedly back at Shouto and Touya.
He grins, watching them all argue.
It’s been five years, since… everything.
Five years, since Todoroki Manor burned; five years since he left behind everything he’d ever known. And at twenty-two-years-old, he’s never been happier in his life.
It hadn’t been easy, at first. They’d made it safely to the docks, stolen a small fishing boat for him, and then- it had been a terrible struggle. He’d never sailed before in his life. The first few days, the boat had merely drifted along in the ocean’s pull; he hadn’t known how to steer it at all, and Touya and Shouto hadn’t been much help.
(Honestly, they'd been incredibly lucky not to get picked up by a harbour patrol, or such.)
But he’d learned, eventually. He’d sold the stolen boat to some… admittedly shady-looking people, used the money to buy himself a brand-new little sailboat, and made it his own.
He makes his life and his home on the sea, now. The below-deck cabin is where he lives, now; it’s filled with everything he needs- books and a small television, his bed and a mini-fridge. Most of his time is spent off-shore; the only time that he goes back is when he needs supplies, the occasional day on land, or to sell the fish that he catches.
Well. Not that he actually does the catching.
More accurately, the fish that Touya and Shouto catch; and more recently, Fuyumi and Natsuo.
After they’d left, Touya and Shouto had stayed with him the whole way; as he got his bearings, readjusted to life. And after about two years at sea, they’d run into Fuyumi again- and with her, Natsuo.
Fuyumi hadn’t been able to find her colony again, after Touya freed her; but, she’d found Natsuo. An orphaned seal, a little bit older than Shouto, who’d also lost his colony; so, the two stuck together. And when Keigo, Touya, and Shouto had found Fuyumi again, well-
Fuyumi and Natsuo aren’t selkies; not like Touya and Shouto. But they’re a part of the family that the five of them have made, anyways; as mismatched as they all are.
Keigo’s never gone back to his hometown; but, he has heard the whispers, when he’s visited a few nearby towns. Apparently, Enji survived the fire, and had tried to blame everything on Keigo, Shouto, and Touya- but, it had been determined that Enji’s gun was the one that set off the flames, which threw the investigation into confusion, and then- well.
Keigo, Shouto, and Touya weren’t there to defend themselves or testify, anyways, and had no intention of going back to do so. And after no one had been able to find them, the investigation had been dropped and they were apparently assumed dead from the fire, and Enji-
Keigo doesn’t know what’s happened to Enji now, only that the bastard lost all his work in the flames, and hasn’t worked as a scientist since. And all he can really say to that is, good riddance.
His own dream of being a famous scientist has been let go of, too. And he finds that he’s much happier as a pseudo-fisherman; he gets to spend his days exploring the sea now. Studying ocean life in a way that he’d never have been able to before- still acting as a scientist, really, but in a way he's much more comfortable with. And- he has his family, now. A family that he’d never dreamed of having, back when he still lived in his small seaside hometown.
Shouto, Natsuo, Fuyumi, and of course, Touya.
(They've been more to him than his foster mother ever had, or could have been.)
They make their lives together, now. And- after about six-months of sea-life, and them figuring themselves out, he and Touya had finally made it official- and they’ve been together ever since.
It’s his partner’s voice that snaps him out of his thoughts. “You agree with me, right Keigo?”
He blinks, refocusing to see all four of them staring at him. “What?”
Touya snorts. “You weren’t paying any attention, were you?”
He sputters. “What? No- I mean, yes, I mean-”
Shouto cuts in, blue-and-gray eyes rolling. “Please, Keigo. Just tell Touya that it’s perfectly rational for-”
“No it’s not!” Touya interrupts, shoving a hand over Shouto’s face and glaring at the youngest of them all. “Stop distorting the facts!”
Keigo smirks, raising his eyebrow at both of them, but Touya in particular. “Yeah, I have no idea what you’re talking about, baby.”
Down in the water, Fuyumi lets out a stuttering, laughing series of yips.
Touya raises both eyes heavenwards, as if praying for patience, but comes towards him anyways, expression wild and wonderful. “They’re ganging up on me, Kei.”
He pretends to deliberate, but doesn’t bother to put away his smug look. “Well, in their defense, you do make it very easy to-”
Touya gasps, and Keigo breaks out laughing. In lieu of finishing his sentence he strips off his shirt and kicks off his shoes; jumps over the side of the boat, and lands next to Natsuo with a splash. The large gray seal chitters at him, but swims closer to Fuyumi, watching him with evident amusement.
From the deck of the boat, Touya huffs at him, before those blue eyes narrow. The redhead turns to Shouto. “Hold my skin!”
At this point, Keigo is well-used to the sight of a naked Touya; but, his breath still catches, as his boyfriend leaps over the side of the sailboat, landing next to him, and swims closer in the ocean waves. “That wasn’t very smart. Where will you go now?”
“Oh, I don’t know.” He treads water a little closer, feeling his smile grow. He’s vaguely aware of Shouto retreating deeper onto the deck, away from them; of Fuyumi and Natsuo swimming around to the other side of the boat; but all he can focus on is Touya in front of him. Red hair is soaking wet; crystal droplets pouring down Touya’s face, and Keigo wants to lean in and lick them away. “Who says I wanted to get away at all?”
“Mm.” His boyfriend laughs at him, but presses their foreheads together. “An excellent choice.”
Keigo reaches out his arms then, and yanks Touya into a kiss, shivering as he feels his boyfriend press up against him. Touya moans in response, warm hands cupping his cheeks, until he’s no longer sure where one of them ends, and the other begins.
Eventually, their feet forget to keep kicking, and they sink beneath the waves, lips still locked.
When finally, they pull back, Keigo opens his eyes. Touya is backlit by sunlight-through-the-water; red hair floating like a halo in the current, and eyes bluer than the sea that surrounds them.
Keigo almost inhales water at the sight; but Touya lets out a low cackle, pulling him to the surface. They break the waves, and with a snort Touya’s on him again, pulling him into another breathless kiss.
Keigo holds on tight, and happily drowns in the other man’s pull.
Around them, the sound of the ocean is a comforting lull; salty sea air marking their every breath.